The 76ers have currently the 3rd pick and they also have the Lakers 1st round pick which is top 5 protected.
Here are the current NBA standings
- NYK 15-62 .195
- MIN 16-60 .211
- PHI 18-20 .231
- LAL 20-56 .263
- ORL 24-53 .312
- SAC 25-50 .342
The Lakers have 6 games left and if they win the remaining 6, they'll be at 26-56. The Lakers winning their remaining 6 games is very unrealistic.
However, the lottery IS realistic. The Lakers DO have a chance to fall out of that top 5. Assuming the order remains, while every team bumps up, the Lakers would LOSE their pick and the Kings would bump up.
New order could be
1. NYK
2. MIN
3. PHI
4. ORL
5. SAC
Of the top 5 teams, only 1 or 2 really need a PG.
Assuming the above is the draft order, the top 3 remain in some type of order, Towns, Okafor, and Russell/Mudiay.
When Orlando gets on the clock, they will under 0 circumstances consider a PG. They already have Victor Oladipo who's a combo guard and they recently drafted a very nice PG in Payton. They'll draft a PF or a SF.
This leaves the Kings with a cornerstone star player!
Russell or Mudiay would be available to us at 5.
Either player gives us a potential super star and they immediately improve our backcourt. If we get Mudiay, he's going to be able to hold penetration and we will see less and less teams driving and getting open 3's.
This would be the absolute best situation for the Kings.
So..in one way or another, we should cheer for the Lakers.
Let's cheer for them to lose their pick!